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Postural balance under normal and altered sensory conditions in normal-weight and overweight children
Eva D'Hondt1, Benedicte Deforche, Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij
1Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Ghent University, Belgium. eva.dhondt@ugent.be
Insights
Overweight children show subtle differences in postural sway, particularly younger ones, but no clear sensory impairments were found. Other factors likely explain balance issues in overweight youth.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric physical therapy
- Biomechanics
- Childhood obesity research
Background:
- Limited research exists on how multisensory information impacts postural stability in overweight children.
- Understanding these factors is crucial for addressing potential balance deficits in this population.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate postural balance control in normal-weight versus overweight children.
- To examine how altered sensory conditions affect balance in these groups.
Main Methods:
- Sixty children (7-12 years) were classified as normal-weight or overweight based on BMI.
- Postural stability was assessed using a force plate under varying sensory conditions (vision, plantar sensation).
- Center of Pressure (COP) dynamics and intra-individual variability were quantified.
Main Results:
- Vision removal increased postural sway in all children, with no significant BMI group differences.
- Overweight children exhibited higher COP velocities and medial-lateral sway with reduced plantar sensation.
- Younger overweight children (7-9 years) showed greater variability in postural sway velocity.
Conclusions:
- No clear sensory organization impairments were identified in overweight children compared to normal-weight peers.
- The study suggests that factors beyond sensory processing contribute to balance deficiencies in overweight children.
- Further research is needed to identify these contributing factors.
Background:
little or no research has been done in the overweight child on the relative contribution of multisensory information to maintain postural stability. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate postural balance control under normal and experimentally altered sensory conditions in normal-weight versus overweight children.
Methods:
sixty children were stratified into a younger (7-9yr) and an older age group (10-12yr). Participants were also classified as normal-weight (n=22) or overweight (n=38), according to the international BMI cut-off points for children. Postural stability was assessed during quiet bilateral stance in four sensory conditions (eyes open or closed, normal or reduced plantar sensation), using a Kistler force plate to quantify COP dynamics. Coefficients of variation were calculated as well to describe intra-individual variability.
Findings:
removal of vision resulted in systematically higher amounts of postural sway, but no significant BMI group differences were demonstrated across sensory conditions. However, under normal conditions lower plantar cutaneous sensation was associated with higher COP velocities and maximal excursion of the COP in the medial-lateral direction for the overweight group. Regardless of condition, higher variability was shown in the overweight children within the 7-9yr old subgroup for postural sway velocity, and more specifically medial-lateral velocity.
Interpretation:
in spite of these subtle differences, results did not establish any clear underlying sensory organization impairments that may affect standing balance performance in overweight children compared to normal-weight peers. Consequently, it is believed that other factors account for overweight children's functional balance deficiencies.
